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Child’s model of early Australian settler’s hut near Mudgee, NSW, made c.1852

This is a delightfully naive model of an early Australian settler’s slab hut. Made of clay, wood and mixed media, it was created by 19 year old Charlotte Rushby (1833-1914) living near the NSW town of Mudgee in about 1852. She is also said to have made a model of an Aboriginal camp near the settlement as well. According to the family, both the models travelled to England in 1900 for display in an exhibition.

Charlotte was a daughter of Michael Rushby and Elizabeth Holmes who arrived in New Sout...

Physical Description

A child's model of an Australian nineteenth century settler's slab hut executed in a naive style. The model is on a base board painted with ochre and sprinkled in parts with chaff. A wooden model of a settler's hut of vernacular single cell type with a lean-to and articulated chimney. The vertical sectioned walls are painted white. The hipped roof is constructed of [eucalyptus] sp. bark and secured by an overlaid grid of sticks. At the rear of the board is a backdrop of dried native species branches. Set on either side of the door opening is unfired earthenware painted figures of a man and woman in mid-nineteenth century costume. Set all over the base are similarily made figures, from left to right: 2 cocks, 2 hens, 5 geese, 4 goslings placed around a modelled trough, 1 cow, 1 calf, 1 sheep, 1 dog, 1 sow, 4 piglets, 4 ducks placed around a trough, 1 hen, 5 chickens, another dog, 1 horse and 6 hens.

Made

History

Notes

The Rushby family arrived in the colony as free settlers in 1840 and settled at McDonald's Creek, near Mudgee, where Michael Rushby established a farm and built a slab hut with a bark roof, lean-to and chimney. His daughter Charlotte commemorated the family settlement by making this model from 'found' materials.